Railway safety appliance.



PATENTBD AUG. 2, 1904.

V R. B. WILLIAMS.

RAILWAY SAFETY APPLIANCE.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 9, 1904.

N0 MODEL. I

Izaak-5L; ggig ENESSES: I

A V ATTORNEY UNITED STATES Patented August 2, 1904.

PATENT OFFICE.

RAILWAY SAFETY APPLIANCE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 766,479, dated August 2, 1904.

Application filed April 9, 1904.

To all 7071/0121 7'25 may concern:

Be it known that I, RUssELL B. \VILLIAMs, a citizen of the United States, residing at Scranton, in the county of Lackawanna and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Railway Safety Appliances, of which the following is a specification.

The object of the present invention is to provide apparatus for guarding a car or train of cars when at rest both against unauthorized removal and against such removal, whether authorized or not, as would imperil railway employees at work upon the car or train such. for instance, as inspectors. Thus after a train has been run into the yard or train-shed after a trip it is customary for the inspector to forthwith examine the running-gear, this duty commonly taking him under the cars. If now the locomotive having been detached when the train was brought to rest another locomotive should be coupled to the train to move it while the inspector was beneath one of the cars at work upon the running-gear, such inspector would be exposed to grave danger.

In carrying out the invention in an approved form the safety-signal is applied to one of the rails at either end of the car or train. It comprises a clamping device for the purpose of such attachment, which may include jaws hinged to each other and adapted to embrace the ball of the rail and suitable signals for both day and night use suitably attached to such jaws. FUI'iJlICIIHOIO, the device includes means for the application of a torpedo or torpedoes arranged in such relation to the rail as that should a locomotive approach the car or train an explosion would result, which would warn the inspector sulficiently in advance of the movement of the car or train to enable him to escape from a dangerous position.

The invention further contemplates the use of an appliance of the character described which may be used in connection with rails of varying sizes, the jaws of the clamping device being provided with an adjustable locking mechanism, so that after the appliance has been set it may be locked in position to prevent unauthorized removal.

Serial No. 202,844. (No model.)

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a side elevation of the safety appliance attached to a rail. Fig. 2 is an enlarged end elevation, the signals and their supporting-shafts being detached. Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross section illustrating one form of locking mechanism for attaching the hinged jaws securely together; and Fig. 4 is a top plan view on the line 4 at, Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings, in which similar letters denote corresponding parts, Adesignates a rail of common form, and B the clamping mechanism of the safety appliance. (Shown in position relatively to such rail in Figs. 1 and Said clamping mechanism is here shown as comprising the jaws C l), hinged together by means of the pivot-pin c. The lower portions of said jaws C l) are provided with the inturned ends 0 (1, adapted to eoact with the under side of the ball of the rail, the construction of said jaws below the pivotal point being such as to embrace the ball of the rail and clamp the same firmly against accidental displacement. The upper ends of said clamping-jaws C l) are here shown as provided with sockets (1', each of which is adapted to receive and support a shaft the former carrying at its upper end the [lag or day-signal r" and the latter carrying at its upper end the lantern or nightsignal The clamping mechanism B will preferably be constructed of pressed steel or other suitable durable material. The shafts d of the day and night signals may, if desired, be of wood or other material.

It is of course desirable that after a car-inspector shall have secured his safety appliance in position at one or both ends of the train the same shall not be interfered with by an unauthorized person, thereby leaving the inspecterunguarded. For this purpose any suitable locking mechanism may be em ployedas, for instance, a lockbetween the clamping-jaws (I D, and because of the considerable variation in the sizes of rails in common use such a locking device must be adjustable. One form of lock meeting this requirement is illustrated in detail in Fig. 3, in which the aws C and D are shown as provided with housings 0 (Z, respectively. The clamping-jaw Dis provided with an adjustable bolt F, having a hook-shaped inner end f, the body of said bolt being screw-threaded and passingthrough nuts f and by means whereof the degree of projection of the end f'of said bolt may be readily determined. Within the housing 0 is located the locking mechanism proper, the same comprising the locking-tongue G,hinged at g and provided with an actuating leafspring g. Immediately below the lockingtongue G may 'be arrangeda keyhole 9 extending entirely through the housing 0 .as illustrated in Fig. 2. As will easily be understood, upon the introduction of the key into the keyhole g the locking-tongue G'ma-y readily be raised to free the same from the hook-shaped end f of the bolt F. At the same time the engagement of said lockingtongue Gr with said bolt F is automatic, it being necessary only to move the clampingjaws together for this purpose.

E designates a wing secured to'or formed integral with any suitable part of the appliance. It is here shown as formed integral with the jaw D of the clamping mechanism and extends outward substantially at right angles to the upper vertical portion of said jaw, so as to directly overlie the top of the rail A.

e edesignate torpedoes which may be placed upon saidwing E, the leaden ribbons or straps of said torpedoes being bent'around the edges of such wing, as-clearly shown in Fig. 2.

In practice a safety appliance such as that above described should be clamped to the rails by the inspector at both endsof thecar or =train-at rest and at a suitable distance say from fifty to one hundred feet.therefrom. Should a locomotive-driver ignoring the signals carried thereby run his engine toward the -car-or train for the purpose of coupling to the same, he would first have to demolish the appliance and in so doing would explode the torpedoes E, thereby giving sufficient warning to the inspector to escape from beneath the car or train, as aboveexplained.

'I-do not desire to limit myself specifically to the details of the mechanism hereinabove described, as the same may be varied without departing from the invention. Particularly is this true'with respect to the locking .mechanism of which I have attempted'to show no more thana suggested form adapted to meet the requirements above stated.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new therein, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is as follows:

1. In a railway safety appliance, the-oombination with a rail, of a clamping device, a signal supported thereby, and a wing or supably secured to the ball of a rail, of a locking' device for said jaws, and means for supportving a signal or signals in said jaws, substantially as set forth.

4. In a railway safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws whose lower ends are adapted to coact with a rail and whose upper ends are adapted to support a signal or signals, of a wing carried by one of said jaws and overlying said rail, substantially as set forth. I

5. In a railway'safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws adapted to coact with a rail, of sockets carried by the upper ends of said jaws and adapted to support a signal-or signals, substantially as set forth.

6. In a railway safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws whose lower ends are adapted to coact with a rail,-of a locking device for automatically locking said jaws in position after attachment to such rail, substantiallyas set forth.

7. In a railway safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws whose lower ends are adapted to coact with a rail and whose upper ends are provided with a means for supporting a signal or signals, of a locking device for securing said jaws in apredetermined position, and a wing carried by one of said jaws and directly overlying said rail, said wing being adapted to support a torpedo, substantially as set forth.

'8. In a railway safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws adapted to coact with a rail and to support a signal or signals, of an ad ustable locking device coacting with said jaws, substantially as set forth.

9. In a railway safety appliance, the combination with hinged jaws adapted to coact with a rail and to support a signal or signals, of locking mechanism automatically thrown to operative position by the attachment of said jaws to said rail and manually thrown to inoperative position, substantially as set forth.

This specification signed and witnessed this 28th day of March, 1904.

RUSSELL B. WILLIAMS.

Witnesses: I

CHAs. H. HORTON, WILLIAM H. KINNEY. 

